A flashing red light was the first thing Shaggy saw when he awoke. The irritating bulb was situated just above the Holo-screen in his cell. Shaggy was half-sprawled across his shitty prison bed. His legs were up on the low-standing bed while his torso and upper body were on the floor. Judging from the pain in his entire body, Shaggy was sure he was tossed into his cell unceremoniously.

He awkwardly pulled himself to his feet and groaned as his back popped. As he stood, the blinking light stopped and his holo-screen came to life. Warden Volk appeared on his screen, a dour look to his aged face. His gaze pierced into Shaggy and seemed to study him from within his screen.

“I see that having you within the general populace is going to be a challenge. Not only did you rip the hand off a fellow prisoner. But you beat poor Mr. Chalika almost to death.”

“Hey, what do you think that asshat was trying to do to me? Was I just supposed to take an ass-kicking?”

“Frankly? Yes! You were supposed to accept your place in your new home, Mr Robertson. Your standard practice of slaughtering all of those who get in your way won’t fly here. Which should be apparent. We have the equipment and the resources to take you down if need be.”

Shaggy couldn’t help himself as he rolled his eyes and pointed at his collar. “Sure ya do. How about you take this little trinket off and say that? We both know without this, I’d crush your little prison, Volk.”

“Which is why that little ‘trinket’ will not be coming off of your neck for the remainder of your stay here. Also, you shall be isolated from the general population for the rest of the day. Tomorrow, you shall be under supervision by no less than four guards at all times.”

“Well, don’t I just feel special,” Shaggy growled.

Volk sneered. His wrinkly face scrunching up unpleasantly. “You aren’t, Mr. Robertson. You are just another in a long line of degenerates.”

Shaggy was about to make another snide remark. When the room Warden Volk was in came alive with red lights and sirens. The old man’s scowled deepened, and he tapped something out of Shaggy’s view. He had a brief view of the warden’s office before a fully armored guard rushed into the room.

“Sir, there’s been an assault on D-Block! It’s the twins, Flash and Fire! They are breaking out-”

“I can guess what they are doing, trooper! See that they are stopped! Call in our back-up squads and squash this before any rats flee their cages!”

Shaggy grinned as he watched a jailbreak play out from the NPC side for the first time. He crossed his arms and leaned against the giant metal door of his cell. The movement caught Volk’s eye and the old man turned to sneer at him again. Shaggy flicked the old man off as the Holo-screen went out.

Silence filled Shaggy’s cage, and he growled in frustration. He was still sore all over and he was hungry. Not to mention there was no sense of time in his cell. Normally he’d bring up a forum or an internet window, but the collar stopped all of that. Instead, he was stuck in an iron box with just his thoughts for company.

“And there’s no knowing how long before that starts to grate on me.” Shaggy thought as he looked around his tiny cell for the umpteenth time.

He started a little workout while he waited for something to happen. If he hadn’t been unconscious long, then the next thing to happen to him would be lunch. He started light with some push-ups and sit-ups, but then got bored and started doing burpees and squats. Even with the collar, his stamina was pretty great, so Shaggy got bored again before he actually got tired. He was dead-lifting his bed when a soft blue glow told him his holo-screen had kicked on again.

“What? Are YOU getting bored, warden? Well, piss off, you’re interrupting my workout.”

“Son, we need to have a talk about your attitude. You’re not a teenager. Can you at least try a little impulse control?” Obadiah’s voice echoed in his cell.

Shaggy gripped the side of his bed and flipped it flat again. The mattress stubbornly stuck to the metal frame as he laid it down. Brushing dirt from his hands, Shaggy glared up at the old cyborg.

“Hey, that shit wasn’t my fault. How was I supposed to know the warden would go on a power trip? Next thing I know, I’m fighting half of C-block and a giant rock fucker is trying to take my head off.”

Obadiah raised a finger and counted. “First, he’s a warden, so of course he’s going to have a bit of a god complex. Two, you fought a little less than a quarter of C-block. Don’t exaggerate. And third, if the warden had wanted your head, he would have your head. Remember, you’re playing a dangerous game with half of the pieces.”

Shaggy, again, tugged at the suppression collar. “Yeah, about that… is there anyway of getting this damn thing off my neck? Job would be a hell of a lot easier without it.”

“Yeah, I bet it would. But no, Shaggy. Other than cutting off your own damn head, which I don’t think you should try, there’s no way.”

Shaggy grimaced at the thought. What would he even use to cut off his own head? Whatever it was, it wouldn’t be quick.

“So, what did you want? I’m stuck in here for my little cafeteria dust-up. Which means I’m no use to you.”

“Actually, we’ve got intel that the warden may be more connected to this thing than we thought. We’re going to need you to infiltrate his office and find what you can.”

Shaggy glared pointedly at the four walls of his cell. Obadiah grinned evilly.

“You may not be aware, but a riot is currently going on in D-block…”

“Yeah, I heard. Some villainous twins?”

Obadiah nodded. “Agents One and Two have used the confusion to sneak into the prison. Now their disguises won’t last. The prison scans the biometrics of its guards every hour. So they only have a limited window to rush in and plant some things.”

“Some things?”

“Nothing overt. But if Agent One can do her job, we may be able to create a backdoor into their systems. From there, I should be able to help you tonight.”

“Tonight!?”

“Yes. If everything goes according to plan, we will have one shot at getting you into the warden’s office. Now, I need to reiterate, Shaggy, this is a stealth mission. By no means are you to injure, maim, or incapacitate anyone! Is that understood?”

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Shaggy growled in annoyance. “Oh, it’s understood, but I don’t like it.”

“I really don’t care what you like, Shaggy. Tonight, your cell is going to open and you are going to make your way to the center of the complex. Most of the doors are automated, but the halls are patrolled at regular intervals. You’ll need to be quick and silent.”

“I don’t even know where I’m going!”

Obadiah nodded and typed something. The old cyborg’s face disappeared from the screen and was replaced with a crude image of the prison. Shaggy squinted as Obadiah dictated directions. As the old man spoke, each section of the prison map would glow.

“You are here, in C-block. Unfortunately, you’re at the ass-end of it, so your first hurdle is going to be making it down the long cell block. Once you’ve accomplished that, I’ll open the doors at the far end and get you through the entrapment area. Once through, you will take this path to the kitchens and into this vent here…”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” Shaggy said, waving his hands before pointing to another hallway on the map. “What about this hall here? Why the hell am I going through a damn vent? It look’s like this route goes straight to where I need to be.”

Obadiah dropped the crude map and scowled at Shaggy. “That is the magic section of the prison. Our technological means won’t work in that direction. You’d have to be a powerful mage, proficient in trap detection and ward breaking. Our path leads you around all that.”

Shaggy dropped his hand and looked sheepish. “Ah… got it. Sorry. Carry on.”

“Once in the ventilation system, I will lead you through the ducts. Then we drop you here, on the other side of the library. From there you climb up this elevator shaft and to the top floor of the prison. The warden’s office is at the far end of the floor and should be unlocked. Once inside, you need to log into his computer and put it on the prison’s network. From there, I can take over.”

“Then it’s back down the elevator, through the vents, past the entrapment area, and back in my cell for me?”

“Yes.”

“I hate this plan.”

“It is the deal you agreed to, Shaggy. So you will see it done. Now, do you need to go over it again?”

Shaggy nodded. “A few times. It will keep my mind occupied while I work out. First, what are the foreseeable hiccups?”

Shaggy questioned every step of the plan as he started his workout retinue over from the top. He and Obadiah brainstormed several scenarios. Even one where Shaggy wandered into the Magic Section by mistake. Although Obadiah didn’t like Shaggy’s odds in the direction. They both planned past Shaggy’s lunch before Obadiah called a stop to everything.

“You need to rest, and I need to make sure everything is prepared. Agents One and Two succeeded in infiltrating the prison and have escaped again. Now we only have to wait for tonight.”

“Joy.” Shaggy said as Obadiah vanished from his holo-screen. “Now I get to sit here and stew until my cold dinner arrives.”

Shaggy flung himself on his bed and closed his eyes. Working out made him work up a sweat, and he was feeling gross. He tried to take his mind off it and mapped out tonight’s plan in his brain. According to the old cyborg, there shouldn’t be too many surprises. But Shaggy knew better. Something would go wrong tonight. He just had to be ready for it.

Exhausted and still digesting lunch, Shaggy felt himself drift off. But it wasn’t to sleep. Shaggy dropped deep into his inner world. The formally dark space where he kept his wolf. The big black wolf was bounding across grassy fields as Shaggy appeared. He barely had enough time to register what was happening before the enormous wolf pounced on him.

Shaggy and his wolf tumbled through the grass and he momentarily thought he was being attacked. But his wolf was playfully nipping at him as they rolled. Shaggy felt confused, as the wolf had never been this playful before. He shoved the great big creature off of him as he stumbled to his feet. His inner wolf huffed as it rolled through the grass and stood to its full height.

“What in the hell has gotten into you?” Shaggy wondered aloud.

In response, his wolf crouched low and waggled its behind playfully. Shaggy was hit with a wave of emotion and he almost laughed out loud.

“You’re bored? How are you not always bored? You live in a metaphysical void with nothing to do, ever.”

Another wave of emotion as his wolf tilted its giant head.

“You play when I play? What the hell does that mean?”

His wolf responded by batting Shaggy to the side roughly. The wave of emotions coming off the wolf made his thoughts very clear. Shaggy hadn’t been using the wolf since he’d been collared. Now his inner wolf was going stir crazy. And his little jaunt in the cafeteria had made the damn thing jealous.

“Hey, that’s not my fault. Blame this stupid collar.” Shaggy said, reaching up to his neck.

However, his fingers brushed only skin as they felt around his neck. There was no sign of a collar. In fact, once Shaggy took in his own mental appearance, he noticed he wasn’t wearing his prison jumpsuit either. With a thought, he tried to summon his claws to his hands. In front of him, his wolf shuffled from side to side excitedly.

Muted pain flared around Shaggy’s neck, but it was far from debilitating. Grunting against the pain, he focused solely on his right hand. His fingers slowly grew longer and his nails shifted to long, black claws. Fur sprouted from the back of his hand and crawled up his skin as the transformation slowed to a complete stop. Shaggy winced as the pain flared again and he felt a tightness around his neck. Then his inner wolf tackled him to the ground and Shaggy lost his focus.

His hand shifted back to normal and Shaggy was playfully batted. He tried to find his zen and focus again. But the pain in his throat and being slapped around made it difficult. Eventually, Shaggy gave up and simply played with the gigantic beast. He hadn’t predicted what his inner wolf would go through when their connection was tampered by the effects of the collar. Their connection had grown so much that it was almost instinctual. But Shaggy was used to going without. His new digital passenger? Not so much.

The two played for what felt like hours and Shaggy was only pulled from his mindscape by the sound of the slot opening on his door. Another small, white cardboard box slid into his cell before the slot closed and Shaggy sighed. One disappointing cold sandwich later, Shaggy was back with his wolf. Although now all the big lupine bastard wanted to do now was rest.

While playing, the two had increased Shaggy’s mindscape in places. Bigger, more comfortable cage for his wolf and an extensive field for the brute to roll around in. But now the wolf was yawning and circling just outside his larger cage. For some reason, the stubborn wolf still wouldn’t let Shaggy turn it into a doghouse.

“Lazy mutt.” Shaggy muttered as he stared down at his hand.

His throat still pulsed with pain, but the partial transformation ate at him. Shaggy focused again on his right hand, carefully shifting back into his larger clawed form. His collar made its presence known and Shaggy winced as he felt like he was being choked by someone much weaker than him. He held the transformation for as long as he could, but soon he had to drop it. It was a fine trick, but not one that seemed to have any use. The pain from the collar made it difficult to use his shifted hand as a weapon. It took a staggering amount of concentration just to maintain it.

“What about smaller?” Shaggy said aloud as he focused on one finger.

He braced himself for the pain and he felt the spike hit him, but it was a whole lot easier to bare. Shaggy grinned to himself as his throat constricted under the power of the collar. His finger nail grew out into a long black claw as Shaggy focused. He released and tried it over and over again until the pain in his neck became a dull thrum. Soon it got to be too much and Shaggy sat choking in the grass field in front of his wolf’s cage. The big beast cracked an eye to stare at him before huffing and rolling over.

Shaggy chuckled as he stood up unsteadily. He wasn’t sure how much longer he had, but he was going to need some sleep before Obadiah’s little side mission. He waved goodbye to his wolf and left his mindscape with a thought. Shaggy came back to himself, laying on his bed, sweating and in pain. He had tried going back and forth between his mindscape and the game world while his finger was shifted. But the trip would snap him out of the transformation.

Now he wanted to make an actual attempt outside of his mindscape. Biting his lip against the pain, Shaggy focused on his right index finger. He emptied his mind and tried to picture what he wanted to do. Shifting came much easier in the mindscape, and it took all his concentration to even get a ripple to go through his skin. The collar pulsed around his neck and Shaggy felt exhaustion take him as his hand fell back and hit him in the face. The pain was enough to annoy him into cracking an eye before he passed out. As he did, Shaggy spotted his fingernail shifting back to its normal color from a deep dark black. Then sleep overtook him.